Safe & Sound
by He Who Writes His Own Canon
Summary: AU season 5 (Klaine never got back together): After Kurt breaks up with him for someone else, Blaine finds himself falling for a classmate who likes him back. But this new target of Blaine's affections has a dark past, which will come to light with the arrival of a new student. Blaine/OC.


_**A/N**_: When I realized that this story wasn't going to fit into _**The Kurtbastian Series**_' canon, I decided to keep it a standalone story. This first chapter's been through some rewrites, so it's better than before. Enjoy.

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><p>Joel Richardson sat in his fifth period History class as Mr. Schuester lectured about World War II. He yawned and twirled his pencil in his hand. Another hour until school ended and he could go to Glee club and bitch about not getting a solo. He had decided to take up the role that Rachel Berry left when she graduated.<p>

"Joel?" Mr. Schuester called.

"Yeah?" he answered, looking at the teacher.

"Are you paying attention?"

"Maybe. Why?" Joel smirked. His classmates snickered.

"Joel, you're not doing particularly well in this class." Mr. Schuester tapped his pointer on the desk. "You don't participate in class discussions."

"And you're singling me out in front of everyone? Nice teaching, Mr. Schue."

"Joel, stop starting arguments," Blaine Anderson sighed. Joel scoffed and sat back, folding his arms across his chest. The bell rang and Joel grabbed his bookbag, heading out into the hall while ignoring Blaine's attempts to talk to him. He bumped into someone, accidentally knocking the books out of their arms.

"Watch it, loser!" A voice snapped. Joel picked up the fallen books and looked back at a guy in a Letterman jacket. He knew most of the guys with such jackets but didn't recognize this one.

"Sorry," Joel chuckled. "I'm a bit of a klutz."

"Stay the fuck out of my way," the guy snarled, pushing Joel against a locker.

"Whoa, okay," Joel muttered. "No need to get all touchy-feely about it."

"Joel, you okay?" Blaine asked, walking over.

"Yeah." Joel brushed off his shirt and picked up his bag. "What a douche. Who is he?"

"Ian Cassidy," Blaine replied knowingly. "He just transferred from some school in Columbus or something."

"And he already has a letter jacket? Fun. Another dumbass jock to deal with," Joel sighed. "Well, last class is English Lit. Let's go."

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><p>An hour later, Joel walked into the choir room and found no one there. He glanced at his phone and looked around. Glee club was supposed to start five minutes ago. Shrugging, Joel pulled out his iPod.<p>

"_I wanted your love, but look what it's done to me_

_All my dreams have come to nothing_

_Who would have believed_

_All the laughter that we shared would be a memory_

_I cannot count the tears you've cost me_

_If I could have seen_

_And do you ever think of me?_

_And how we used to be?_

_Oh, I know you're somewhere else right now_

_Loving someone else, no doubt_

_Well, I'm one for sorrow, ain't it too, too bad?_

_Are you breaking someone else's heart?_

_'Cuz you're taking my love where you are_

_Well, I'm one for sorrow_

_Ain't it too, too bad for us?_"

"Joel?" Joel wiped his eyes and looked for the source. "Hey, man, are you okay?" Ryder walked into the room with Marley, Kitty, and Tina.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Just fine. Where were you guys?"

"Old Lady Hodges held us for talking during one of her boring lectures," Kitty said.

"Who were you singing about?" Marley quipped.

"No one special," Joel murmured, looking at his shoes. "He's not interested anyway. It doesn't matter."

"He goes here, doesn't he?" Kitty smirked.

"Let me guess. Is it Blaine?" Tina teased. Joel declined to answer and started shuffling through his iPod.

"Do you believe in true love, Joel?" Marley asked. Joel nodded. "You'll find someone. There's someone out there for everyone."

"Yeah, totally, you have a hot guy who's standing right in front of me. Ryder, you are, hands down, the hottest guy in Glee. Kitty has Artie. Sam has that attractive nursing student..."

"Come on, Joel..."

"And I have nobody!" he proclaimed dramatically, dropping to the floor. Watching Blaine enter the room, Joel averted his gaze.

"Okay, everyone, Nationals is in two weeks!" Mr. Schuester declared, coming into the room, followed by the rest of the club. Joel sighed loudly and went to the back of the room, settling himself behind Marley and Ryder. "And Blaine wanted to sing something for us."

"Ooh, big surprise there," Joel grumbled. He heard someone snicker and felt slightly better that someone agreed.

"_It's been seven hours and fifteen days_

_Since you took your love away_

_I go out every night and sleep all day_

_Since you took your love away_

_Since you been gone, I can do whatever I want_

_I can see whomever I choose_

_I can eat my dinner in a fancy restaurant_

_But nothing, I said, nothing can take away these blues_

_'Cause nothing compares,_

_Nothing compares to you,_"

Blaine sang softly, his eyes closed. Joel remebered when Blaine had entered the choir room two weeks earlier to tearfully announce that Kurt had broken up with him in favor of someone else.

"So are we going to audition for Nationals solos?" Tina piped up once Blaine sat down beside Joel, who rolled his eyes.

"Is a certain someone going to get another solo or duet with one of the more visually appealing members of the club?" Joel stood up.

"Dang, Joel, you're just like Rachel," Artie noted.

"That may be, but, unlike Rachel, nobody gives me the time of day," Joel huffed. "All I did was just sway in the background during Regionals while Blaine and Marley sang their pretty little hearts out. I demand recognition. Even a small solo in one song, I would be completely fine with."

"Joel, will you stop being an attention whore?" Blaine snapped.

"Oh, _I'm_ an attention whore? Who sings eighty percent of the songs in here? Who's been moping around for a bloody fortnight over someone who evidently doesn't love him especially if he's been flirting with an older man?" Joel was satisfied to see Blaine flush.

"I think everyone will agree with me when I say that we're all tired of you bitching endlessly about not singing enough. Some other people feel the same way, but they don't badger us constantly about it. We can win this without you, you know," Blaine hissed, clearly trying to control his anger.

"Blaine..." Mr. Schuester started to reprimand, but Joel didn't want to stick around; he silently grabbed his bag and stormed out of the room, but not without kicking over a chair in a very Finn-like fashion.

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><p>Joel ran down the hall, feeling tears prick his eyes. He knew he was never going to be as good a singer as Marley or dancer as Blaine, but the one thing that really got to him is the implication that he wasn't good enough for being in the club overall. Pushing through the front door, Joel sighed and leaned against the brick wall.<p>

"Hey!" A voice called, snapping Joel out of his reverie. He saw that Ian guy coming towards him, flanked by two other guys.

"Um, hi again," Joel said. "Can I do something for you?"

"Yeah, you can go back into whatever fucking closet you came out of," Ian retorted, pinning Joel against the wall.

"W-wait, what did I do?" Joel looked wide-eyed at Ian.

"You know damn well what you did, you little whore." Ian shoved Joel into the arms of his thugs and punched him in the stomach. Joel tried to speak, but Ian's next punch silenced him. Another punch hit him in the face, and then he felt himself hit the pavement with Ian's foot colliding with his chest.

"You better watch yourself, fag." Ian kicked Joel in the chest again. Joel opened his left eye weakly to see Ian leave. He lay on his stomach and coughed up some blood.

"Shit." He rolled onto his back and sighed, lying there for God-knows-how-long until he seemed to black out. Before his eyes closed, he could've sworn he heard someone call his name.

"Joel...!"

And then, darkness.

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><p><span><em><strong>Songs featured<strong>_:

-_One for Sorrow_ (Steps) - Joel

-_Nothing Compares 2 U_ (Prince) - Blaine


End file.
